


Hugs, Fries, and Milkshakes

by diezminutos



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Post 1x13, Post-Canon, mentioned Michael x Maria, post-episode 1x13 Recovering the Satellites, the Liz and Alex friendship we deserve
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-27
Updated: 2019-04-27
Packaged: 2020-02-08 01:20:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18622144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/diezminutos/pseuds/diezminutos
Summary: He wanted to be happy. He really did. All he wanted was to forget about aliens, forget about war, forget about whatever it was his life was right now and eat fries with his friend.





	Hugs, Fries, and Milkshakes

It was the first time Alex went into town for days. He figured after Michael had stood him up, it would just be easier to throw himself into work and making the cabin feel more like home.  That didn't really feel possible without Michael though. Michael was his family. His home. But Michael found home in someone else. Someone that wasn't him. Alex tried to pretend that that didn't hurt that much. Michael was right. They had been holding on to this thing and it was time to let it go.

Easier said than done.

Alex slouched against the booth at the Crashdown and mindlessly played with his milkshake straw not really eating or drinking anything in front of him.

"Alex," he heard Liz's voice. It wasn't really Liz though. Something was wrong.

"Hey," he looked up. "Are you okay?"

"Not really," she shrugged and glanced at the space in the booth beside him, silently asking for permission to sit and eat fries with her friend.

"Come here," he moved down the booth so there was more room for her to sit down. "When does your shift start?"

"Not for a while," she sighed. "I talked to Maria."

Alex was silent. Sure, she had hurt him, but he wasn't about to turn Maria's best friend against her.

"Why didn't you tell us Michael was your museum guy?"

Alex shrugged and finally took a sip of his milkshake, trying to stall for time to find the right words to explain this to her. "He wasn't exactly a model citizen."

"He got into college on a full scholarship. Who wouldn't want to show that off?"

"I just wanted my thing with Guerin to be mine I guess. When other people get involved, things get complicated. That moment at the museum felt right, perfect maybe...and then everything collapsed. I just wanted my moment with him to be absolutely mine. I didn't want anyone to take anything else away from me."

Liz nodded trying to grasp all this new information. She grabbed a fry and reached over to dip it in Alex's glass. Alex watched as she grabbed another one, repeating the action and holding it out to him. He accepted her fry chewing it slowly.

He wanted to be happy. He really did. All he wanted was to forget about aliens, forget about war, forget about whatever it was his life was right now and eat fries with his friend. Alex missed moments like these. He really did. But something about it didn't feel right. He couldn't explain it. How had things gotten so complicated that eating french fries was so difficult?

"I'm sorry I haven't been there," she said finally. "You were right. I've been a bad friend-"

"No, you haven't," Alex shook his head. "I didn't know about all this alien crap when I said that."

"I shut her out and you...my best friends. Nothing I could say could justify that."

"I haven't exactly been open with her either, Liz," Alex sighed.

"I bet she misses you," Liz whispers.

"I miss her," Alex closes his eyes. Alex missed her more than he ever thought it was possible to miss another human being. What made it worse was that it wasn't distance that was making him miss her. It was circumstance and miscommunication. All his life, Alex had planned for Maria to be there. He knew that when he got married, he wanted her to be there standing with him. Now, he didn't know what would happen. And maybe the past ten years he thought Michael would be the man he married, but life has a funny way of challenging you. Confusing you. And hurting you. And right now all of this was a pain he couldn't describe. It wasn't like losing his leg. Losing Maria felt like losing part of his being and right now he had no way of knowing how he was going to get the piece back. "It just hurts right now," was all he could say Liz nodded and rubbed his back gently. Damn, that was an understatement.

"You know he said we would talk," he opened his eyes and faced her. "I poured out my soul to him and then he said to come back the next day and we would talk."

"You never did?" she whispered. Liz was clearly trying to find a way to explain what had happened with Noah that night. Even she was still trying to process everything."You know, everything with Noah happened so suddenly and-"

"I know," he shrugged. "I get it...it just sucks that after all that we've been through he's gonna walk away."

Liz nodded and wrapped her arms around him. "Alex Manes, you're the strongest person I know," she whispered again. "If anyone can get through this, it's you." Alex scoffed and shook his head slightly trying to hold back tears.

If only she knew how wrong she was. Alex had walked away from Michael for years. He walked into a war and Michael seemed fine. Michael didn't need milkshake and fries to cheer him up. Michael walked away once and Alex like a mess. A miserable, pathetic mess. How had Michael managed to keep it together every single time Alex walked away? As far as Alex was concerned, Michael Guerin was the strong one. The brave one. He always had been.

"Alex," Liz spoke softly. "You're gonna get through this. And I'm gonna be there to give you all the hugs, fries, and milkshakes you need."

"You're not a crap friend, Liz," Alex spoke just as softly. "I'm lucky to have you...so is Maria."

Saying her name alone used to make him burst into tears, so he assumed he was making progress when it only made him sigh.

"My antennae are calling me," she moved out of the booth. "But stick around and maybe after my shift, we can go for a drive or something."

"Thanks, Liz," he smiled. It was small but Liz knew an Alex Manes smile when she saw one.

"I'll come check on you in a little bit," she patted his shoulder. Alex watched as she found her place behind the counter.

He knew she was right. Eventually, he would get through this. He knew it was going to hurt a lot, but at least he didn't have to go through it alone.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading whatever this was! Come find me on tumblr if you want to talk about the finale (-michaelneverlooksaway)


End file.
